Bitcoin volatility rose as stablecoin flows surged to $440 billion over the weekend, highlighting investors’ pivot to cash as BTC spot and futures activity decreased. Bitcoin (BTC) holders are gradually becoming less prone to panic selling and instead building up cash buffers to deploy during discounted BTC buying opportunities. Onchain data supports this view, highlighting a large surge in stablecoin activity, with USD Coin (USDC) and Tether’s USDt (USDT) transfers reaching a combined $440 billion on March 22. This shift in investor behavior aligns with the increasing risk-off approach seen in markets as the United States Federal Reserve dismissed near-term interest rate cut expectations, amid rising energy prices due to the ongoing US and Israel-Iran war. Bitcoin’s recent price action highlights a volatile market. It dropped 3.75% to $67,300 on Sunday before rebounding above $71,700 on Monday, with the move largely driven by news around the US and Israel-Iran war. Read more
The stablecoin issuer did not name the accounting firm from the ‘Big Four‘ roster of Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, and KPMG. Stablecoin issuer Tether said it would hire one of the “Big Four” accounting firms to conduct a full audit of its reserves for the first time. In a Tuesday notice, Tether said that the accounting firm — which it did not disclose — would complete a “full independent financial statement audit” for the stablecoin issuer, including for its US dollar-pegged USDt (USDT). The accounting industry’s so-called “Big Four” are Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Read more
The offering allows institutional investors to trade event-based contracts using crypto collateral, as regulatory scrutiny of prediction markets intensifies in the United States. BitGo, a digital asset custody and trading platform, and Susquehanna Crypto will collaborate to give institutional clients over-the-counter access to prediction markets, allowing them to trade event-based contracts using cryptocurrency or stablecoins held in custody. According to Tuesday’s announcement, trades will be routed through BitGo’s platform, with liquidity provided by Susquehanna, which will enable hedge funds, family offices and other large investors to execute bilateral trades without moving assets off platform or converting holdings, including Bitcoin or stablecoin, into cash. Positions are backed by crypto collateral and documented using derivatives-style agreements, with minimum trade sizes starting at $100,000. Read more
BTC price fell below $70,000 on macro tensions as analyst considered a possible bullish "regime shift" already starting to play out for Bitcoin. Bitcoin (BTC) fell below $70,000 at Tuesday’s Wall Street open as macro assets fell over Iran war tensions. Key points: Bitcoin fails to turn $70,000 support as macro selling pressure sparks losses across global assets. Read more